WHO WE ARE

Our beat is the labor front, broadly defined, both geographically and conceptually. We examine the world of work and workers on the job as well as where they live. We examine the issues that affect their everyday lives, with a particular sensitivity towards human rights abuses, environmental concerns and the U.S. drive for global domination. We record their global struggles and provide analysis of their efforts to empower themselves and transform society to provide greater democratic, human, social, political and economic rights. Each program consists of feature stories, generally interviews, within a historical context, often accompanied by sound from demonstrations, rallies or conferences, and complemented and enhanced by poetry and instrumental or vocal -- people's culture.

Over the years Building Bridges has produced a weekly one hour program, Mondays from 7-8 PM EST, covering local, national and international labor and community issues over radio WBAI-Pacifica 99.5 FM in New York.We also produce half hour version, Building Bridges National, which is distribtued to over 40 broadcast and internet radio stations.

For more information you can contact us at knash@igc.org
In Struggle
Mimi Rosenberg & Ken Nash

Thousands of N.Y.C. municipal employees, including health care, education, sanitation, transit, communication, and public housing workers – the diverse category workers who make this city run, filled City Hall Park demanding new labor contracts. NYC’s more than 300,000 employees have spent up to four years working under expired union contracts, without any wage increase to keep pace with inflation, while Mayor Bloomberg contends salary increases, and retroactive pay would blow a massive hole in the city’s budget. Meanwhile, Bloomberg’s predicted budget deficits each year have actually ended with billions in surpluses, and he continues to give billions in contracts to high-priced consultants and outside contractors, some of whom have been marked by fraud and incompetence. So, now municipal workers demand a new deal from a new Mayor in the new year.

MeetingwithTsegau Almaz, Walmart Associate, Crenshaw, Los Angeles, member “OUR Walmart Campaign”Walmart strikers, with support from the OUR Walmart campaign, launched the first extended strike in the company's history, capping it with a rally outside the company's shareholder meeting in Bentonville, Ark, after a

weeklong “Ride for Respect.” Workers from more than 30 cities joined in theRide For Respect to mobilize other Walmart workers and educate the publicabout Walmart’s many abuses. The Walmart workers seek higher pay, more hours of employment, health care, and protection from retaliation whenthey raiseworkers rights issues. Walmart's workers also raised the issuesof thecompanies failure to provide for the health and safety of their workers infactoriesoverseas that manufacture the products the retail giant sells –recalling therecent death of 1,239 garment workers in the Rana Plazabuilding collapsein Bangladesh. Kalpona Akter, the Ex. Dir., of the Bangladesh Center forWorker Solidarity, who implored Walmart to take action to insure that thefactories where Wal-Mart products are made should be safe for the workers joined the Bentonville rally.******************************Cablevision Breaks Law, Then Attacks NLRBwithTim Dubnau, Organizing Coordinator, District One,Communication Workers of AmericaCablevision, the cable giant is asking the federal court to undermine theauthority of the National Labor Relations Board in pursing complaintscharging Cablevision with multiple violations of labor law. Since Brooklyntechnicians voted to unionize more than a year ago, Cablevision has refused to bargain in good faith. Cablevision actually fired 23 workers in Brooklynafter the workers used management’s “open door” policy to talk to a vicepresident about how the company was stonewalling their first-contractbargaining. Cablevision has illegally intimidated workers, brazenly violatedfederal law by firing workers for protected activity, while refusing to offer anyimprovements in wages to the newly unionized technicians in Brooklyn. *******************

Long Term Unemployment A National Crisis with Christine Owens, Ex. Dir., National Employment Law Project

Another month and another tepid unemployment report. The nation's unemployment rate just went up to 7.6% with no prospect for a significant decline in sight. The plight of the long term unemployed who represent over 37% of the unemployed is all but forgotten. Facing daunting odds in finding work, they are also being hit with federal unemployment benefit cuts, that states have been forced to implement due to sequestration and now qualify for fewer weeks of unemployment coverage than at any time since the beginning of the economic crisis.

***************The Economic Elephant

with Robert Reich, Prof. of Public Policy. UC Berkeley, and former

Secretary of Labor

What's really wrong with the economy, and why? Unemployment is still high and job creation hasn't made a big dent this many years into the so-called recovery. Who has the best plan? Is it the Keynesians? On the other end, the Austerics? They both neglect the economic elephant in the room - spreading wealth to the wealthy keeps buying power away from the 99%; it simply does not lead to economic recovery.

The Fair Food Program is a watershed accord signaling the dawn of a "new day" for farmworkers' rights in Florida's tomato fields. For the first timein history, farmworkers and participating buyers and growers are workingtogether to eradicate wage theft, sexual harassment, physical abuse andforced labor.

But, Fast Food giant Wendy's has refused to join The Fair Food Program. To date 11 of Wendy’s competitors, such as McDonalds, Burger King, TacoBell and Subways who have pledged to begin to tackle the flagrant exploitationof farm workers in Florida. Wendy's is the last big holdout of thefast foodgiants, but the Coalition of Immokalee Workers is fanning outacross thecountry to hold them accountable. In NYC they held a rally atUnion Squareand

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BUILDING BRIDGES BASICS

Building Bridges: Your Community and Labor Report is broadcast weekly in the N.Y.C. to the Metropolitan area over WBAI, Pacifica on Mondays from 7-8 PM EST. Building Bridges and most WBAI Programs are now being archived for 90 Days. They are also being PodCast. These links will be live ca. 15 minutes after the program ends. To listen, download or PodCast archived shows go to http://archive.wbai.org/allshows.php?sort=nameaz

We also produce half hour version, Building Bridges National, Edition which is distributed to over 40 broadcast and internet radio stations.

Minding Business, a semi-monthly on-line publication of the Preamble Collaborative. Minding Business covers grassroots progressive activism and major federal, state, and local legislative initiatives directed toward increasing employment and countering the anti-worker, anti-consumer and anti-environmental shenanigans of corporations and their friends in political office. Each issue also contains economic news and editorials by Preamble staff and guest writers.

National Interfaith Committee For Worker Justice- people of faith who educate, organize, and mobilize the religious community in the U.S. on issues and campaigns that will improve wages, benefits, and working conditions for workers, especially low-wage workers.